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Colorado State defeats Hawaii 42-27, ends six-game losing streak

Hawaii defensive lineman Paipai Falemalu (42) returned a fumble in the third quarter Saturday against Colorado State in Fort Collins. (Karl Gehring, The Denver Post)

FORT COLLINS — Finally!

Maybe it was the orange uniforms. Perhaps it was just the opponent. Whatever it was, Colorado State doesn't care, because the Rams experienced something they hadn't in nearly two months.

A win.

The Rams snapped a six-game losing streak with a 42-27 win over Hawaii on a chilly Saturday night before 16,573 at Hughes Stadium. The cynic would say the victory came over a team struggling even more than Colorado State. The Warriors had won just one game too. But CSU doesn't care how it looked or who it was against.

"I just want to say how excited I am for our guys that they got this win," CSU coach Jim McElwain said. "It's something that we really needed as a program, and our guys needed it. I was proud of how they fought."

CSU defensive back Jasen Oden (17) celebrates his interception return for a touchdown in the fourth quarter Saturday. (Karl Gehring, The Denver Post)

CSU moved to 2-6 overall, 1-3 in the Mountain West. Hawaii is 1-6 and 0-4.

A mix of a resurrected running game and an opportunistic defense that forced five turnovers and scored two touchdowns was the difference.

"We needed that," linebacker Shaquil Barrett said. "It seemed like the whole season we haven't scored. Everything as a whole on our defense helped contribute to the win and made our coaches proud of us."

Colorado State had to overcome its own mistakes (five turnovers, eight penalties for 114 yards, a botched onside kick) before it could breathe easy.

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The bulk of Hawaii's scoring opportunities came from CSU miscues. Chris Nwoke's fumble in the first quarter was picked up and returned 12 yards for a touchdown; a second-quarter touchdown was set up after a CSU onside kick was recovered and returned to the 2-yard line. Tommey Morris' fumble in the third quarter deep in CSU's territory resulted in a Hawaii field goal.

After a mostly solid first half, Colorado State was its own worst enemy in the second, turning the ball over on each of its first three possessions — two fumbles and an interception. The defense bailed the offense out twice, forcing a turnover on downs on and then a missed field goal. The Warriors did cash in the third turnover for a field goal, cutting CSU's lead to 28-24.

But CSU kept making huge mistakes.

The Rams' fourth possession of the second half was a three-and-out. The ensuing punt was blocked, and Hawaii picked it up and returned it deep into CSU territory again. Hawaii got a field goal out of that opportunity, making it 28-27.

So the defense took matters into its own hands. DeAndre Elliott intercepted a pass on Hawaii's next possession and returned it 77 yards for a touchdown that gave the Rams breathing room, 35-27, at the start of the fourth quarter.

"That was a great feeling as a quarterback and as an offense when your defense scores points like that," quarterback Conner Smith said. "It's definitely a boost."

In the first half it appeared CSU might break the game open. The 28 points the Rams scored were the most they had put up in any game this season. The running game flourished, chewing up 6.5 yards per carry on 110 yards total with three touchdowns. Nwoke, whose status for the game was initially in question because of a sprained ankle, had 71 of those yards.

He scored on a 7-yard run at the start of the second quarter, a touchdown that pulled CSU even 14-14. The Rams got tricky for their third touchdown, putting linebacker James Skelton in the game to take the direct snap for a 5-yard TD run, the first of his career.

No matter how the good looked, it was a happy CSU locker room for the first time since a victory over Colorado to start the season.

"They were excited, they were relieved," McElwain said of his players. "They feel the pressure. ... They feel the heat of not winning. This was big. This was big."

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